Category Archives: Section

Fighting for the Soul of Public Education

The administration of the University of California, Santa Cruz announced on Friday, February 28 that it would fire fifty-four graduate instructors who are on strike at the University. The announcement comes as the latest move in a nation-wide wave of … Continue reading

Posted in Education, Labor, Labor/Economics | Comments Off on Fighting for the Soul of Public Education

University and High School Students Collaborate to Host September 20th Climate Strike

Between September 20 and 27, over 6000 protests took place in 185 countries as part of the Global Week for Future. Students walked out of classes, workers went on strike, and millions gathered to demand climate justice and take action … Continue reading

Posted in Environment, Students, University of Illinois, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign | Comments Off on University and High School Students Collaborate to Host September 20th Climate Strike

Homewrecker: Trump, the Kurds, and the Grand Strategy We Have Been Waiting For

Donald Trump’s October decision to withdraw U.S. troops from Syria took his own advisors by surprise, not to mention the Kurdish military units that were U.S. partners in the war on ISIS during the past five years. Perhaps the only … Continue reading

Posted in International, International, Middle East, Syria | Comments Off on Homewrecker: Trump, the Kurds, and the Grand Strategy We Have Been Waiting For

Being the Unreasonable: Educating Highly Marginalized Girls to Change the World 

Seema is a 12-year-old Dalit girl from Bihar, one of the poorest states in India. In the social hierarchy, Dalits in India belong to the lowest strata, often devoid of education and job opportunities, and have compromised rights. On one … Continue reading

Posted in Education, Education, Girls, India, Poverty, University of Illinois | Comments Off on Being the Unreasonable: Educating Highly Marginalized Girls to Change the World 

Anti-Austerity Protesters in Ecuador Win Some Concessions, But Unlikely to Prevent Further Unrest or Repression

The government of Ecuador reached an agreement on October 13 with leaders of the protests that had rocked the country for the previous two weeks. The deal, which included the Confederation of Indigenous Nationalities of Ecuador (CONAIE), is a retreat … Continue reading

Posted in Foreign Policy, International, International | Comments Off on Anti-Austerity Protesters in Ecuador Win Some Concessions, But Unlikely to Prevent Further Unrest or Repression

Bolton is Out! But Imperialist Aggression Against Iran is Still In

On September 10, National Security Advisor John Bolton was fired from his post at the White House. With one of the staunchest advocates for US imperialism now out of the Trump administration, some were optimistic that the warmongering and the … Continue reading

Posted in Foreign Policy, Imperialism, International, Middle East, Politics | Comments Off on Bolton is Out! But Imperialist Aggression Against Iran is Still In

Opposition to the Proposed ICE Dwight Detention Center Continues.

Efforts to halt the construction of a 1200-bed Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) detention facility in Dwight, Illinois continue at both the state and local level. The proposed facility would be built and operated by the Virginia-based, for-profit prison company … Continue reading

Posted in Economy, Human Rights, incarceration, Refugees | Comments Off on Opposition to the Proposed ICE Dwight Detention Center Continues.

Need for System Change

The time is long past due for American citizens to realize that our political and economic systems are untenable. Trump is awful, no question there. And for those who continue to support the Democratic candidates as the lesser evil—fine, that’s … Continue reading

Posted in Elections, Foreign Policy, Immigration, Imperialism, Politics | Comments Off on Need for System Change

Welcome to the IMC

Come in. I am writing to invite you deeper into the Urbana-Champaign Independent Media Center. I lead a lot of tours of the IMC. Some of you know more of the history than I do. The IMC has been around, … Continue reading

Posted in Media, UC-IMC | Comments Off on Welcome to the IMC

Securitization in the Heartland: For-Profit Immigration Detention

Dwight, IL, Population 4200. On March 11 the Dwight Village Board voted to move forward with the construction of a privately owned $20 million ICE detention facility on the edge of the town, which is 75 miles north of Champaign-Urbana. … Continue reading

Posted in Immigration, incarceration | Comments Off on Securitization in the Heartland: For-Profit Immigration Detention

Vietnam Today: Did Anyone “Win” the Vietnam War?

Going to college during the Vietnam War transformed my life. Because of my sheltered upbringing, I was rudely awakened. I learned the meaning of imperialism, and with that the lack of justice at home in a class- and race-based hierarchical … Continue reading

Posted in International, Vietnam War | Comments Off on Vietnam Today: Did Anyone “Win” the Vietnam War?

For a World Without Borders

Speech by Tariq Khan at the UIUC Ayuda Rally at Anniversary Plaza, November 29, 2018. UIUC Ayuda was a student group/campaign to raise awareness about and material support for the Central American caravans made up of people seeking asylum. I … Continue reading

Posted in Alt-Right, bigotry, Immigration, Indigenous, Land, Refugees, University of Illinois | Comments Off on For a World Without Borders

Illiberal America: A Report Card

I never thought I would live to see the U.S. turn into the illiberal, authoritarian, populist, white-nationalist country it has already increasingly become in early 2019. Illiberalism Turns Liberal Democracy on its Head “Liberal democracy” is characterized in theory by … Continue reading

Posted in bigotry, Democracy, Elections, Justice, labor, Media, Politics, Trump | Comments Off on Illiberal America: A Report Card

Local Sheriff Cooperating with ICE

On the day Manuel went to have his electronic monitor cut off, he was feeling “uneasy” about being picked up by agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). It only took minutes for the sheriff’s deputy at the county jail … Continue reading

Posted in Immigration, incarceration | Comments Off on Local Sheriff Cooperating with ICE

Brexit, Regrexit, Lexit: Is Socialism in One (European) Country Possible?

On November 25, Great Britain’s Prime Minister Theresa May returned from Brussels with approval from the other 27 European Union (EU) member states for a deal on Brexit, the British commitment to exit the EU pursuant to the results of … Continue reading

Posted in Eastern Europe, European Union, International, International, socialism | Comments Off on Brexit, Regrexit, Lexit: Is Socialism in One (European) Country Possible?

A New Option to Finance A Clean Energy Future for Everyone

While renewable energy technologies have made tremendous strides in recent decades, financing and investment options for those who want to go green have remained scarce. The Clean Energy Credit Union (CECU), chartered by the American Solar Energy Association in 2017, … Continue reading

Posted in Economy, Environment, Environment, solar energy | Comments Off on A New Option to Finance A Clean Energy Future for Everyone

After Four Months in Detention, 8 Year-Old Girl Reunited With Family in C-U

This eight-year-old girl (on the right in the photo) traveled 4,000 miles and spent four months in detention to get a hug from her mother. They were reunited last week at Willard Airport in Champaign. The news reports about children … Continue reading

Posted in Immigration, Refugees | Comments Off on After Four Months in Detention, 8 Year-Old Girl Reunited With Family in C-U

1968 – Not Really So Long Ago or Far Away

“I want kids to see that it wasn’t just Martin Luther King making things happen in the 1960s, it was local folks here as well. Just as it is today.” Katie Snyder, Education Program Specialist, Museum of the Grand Prairie … Continue reading

Posted in 1968, African Americans, African Americans, Environment, University of Illinois, Vietnam War, Youth | Comments Off on 1968 – Not Really So Long Ago or Far Away

What to Watch for Dinner Tonight: Trump Through the Looking Glass

Who does Trump see when he looks in the mirror? Like many of us over the proverbial hill, he likely does not acknowledge his elderly self; he sees his younger self, glamorized through the pronounced image he cultivated over decades … Continue reading

Posted in Arts, film, Trump | Comments Off on What to Watch for Dinner Tonight: Trump Through the Looking Glass

Artist Spotlight on Charlotte Prieu

Tell me a little about yourself and your past creative work. I am a French native and a PhD student in French Linguistics at the University of Illinois. I am very passionate about social justice, especially regarding anti-racism and intersectional … Continue reading

Posted in African Americans, Arts, Justice, Police | Comments Off on Artist Spotlight on Charlotte Prieu